Draft:Justin Choquette

Justin Choquette

Justin Choquette is a Canadian adventure photographer, filmmaker, and content creator based in British Columbia. He is known for outdoor and expedition photography and for commercial campaign work produced for consumer technology and outdoor brands. In 2024 he was one of seven photographers selected internationally for Microsoft's "Windows 11 Wallpaper Expedition", and his resulting photograph was among those released for download by Microsoft. His work has accumulated more than one billion views worldwide. Before working full time in media, he trained and worked as an industrial electrician.

Early life

Choquette became interested in photography at around the age of twelve, beginning with a GoPro Hero 3 Black and photographing mountain biking near his home. At fifteen he was contacted by GoPro, which licensed one of his photographs. He has described this as his first paid photographic work and the point at which he began considering photography as a career.

He graduated from high school early, in grade eleven, and entered trade school to train as an industrial electrician.

Career

Trades and transition

Choquette worked in the electrical trade for approximately four years. He has said that he had no formal instruction in photography and taught himself over a period of years, listening to podcasts and recorded lectures on marketing and business while working, and practising photography on evenings and weekends.

He began securing paid brand assignments while still employed in the trade, and left it to work full time in photography and video production once his creative income exceeded his trade income.

Work and style

Choquette's work centres on mountain and backcountry subjects, including mountaineering, hiking, overlanding, and truck camping, much of it produced in the backcountry of British Columbia and the Canadian Rockies. His output spans short-form social video, long-form documentary video, and still photography produced for commercial clients.

He has said that a substantial proportion of his commercial social content has been captured on a smartphone rather than dedicated camera equipment. He shoots primarily on a Canon R5C with Canon L-series lenses, supplemented by DJI Pocket and Action cameras and a DJI Mavic 3 Pro for aerial work.

Windows 11 Wallpaper Expedition

In 2024, Choquette was selected as the Canadian participant in the "Windows 11 Wallpaper Expedition", a campaign developed by the creative agency Superdigital for Microsoft. Seven photographers based in seven regions were commissioned to plan, shoot, and edit a landscape photograph intended as a candidate for a Windows wallpaper, using Microsoft Surface Copilot+ devices. According to the agency, creators were selected on the basis of an established personal style and an existing audience.

For his contribution, Choquette travelled to northern Canada, living out of a truck and covering more than 7,000 kilometres in search of a location. The campaign invited public voting on the resulting images, and Microsoft subsequently made all seven photographs available for download through its wallpapers site.

Commercial work

Choquette produces still photography and video advertising for consumer brands, and has described commissions from companies including Arc'teryx and Adidas to photograph products in mountain environments for use in advertising. He has also worked with Ford, Canon, DJI, SanDisk, and Air Canada, with Epic Pass and Whistler Blackcomb, and with hospitality clients including Fairmont and Hyatt.

He has undertaken commissioned work for national and regional tourism boards, including those of Switzerland, Iceland, Argentina, and Egypt.

Workshops and education

Choquette operates an online course, The 2 Week Notice, aimed at photographers and content creators seeking to work independently. He has said he created it in response to the difficulty he encountered finding guidance when starting out. He also runs a mentorship program for a limited number of participants at a time.

He runs in-person photography workshops in mountain locations, generally with groups of eight to ten participants over the course of a week, covering photography technique alongside business topics such as social media strategy, brand development, and client acquisition. He has been engaged by Canon to lead workshops focused on entrepreneurship and business, including one held in Banff, Alberta.

Writing

Choquette maintains a travel blog and has published ebooks documenting his transition from the trades into self-employment. His primary ebook has passed 10,000 downloads.

References

https://canvasrebel.com/meet-justin-choquette/ https://shoutoutcolorado.com/meet-justin-choquette-entrepreneur-photographer-and-social-media-influencer/ https://www.boredpanda.com/windows-wallpaper-challenge-superdigital/

https://www.adsoftheworld.com/campaigns/wallpaper-expedition

https://petapixel.com/2024/11/04/photographers-compete-to-shoot-microsofts-next-iconic-windows-wallpaper/ https://www.justinchoquette.com/bloghome